Euskal Oiloa ( Basque Thread)

[ronott1]

Hi All

I will share a couple of pictures of me with my favorite little Roo, Seiji:







He does have very yellow legs.

Bye,

Ron

 

[buckabucka]

Seiji looks great! I don't have any birds that would let me pick them up, except maybe for a second while they scream and struggle. I guess I never have time to tame them. I may have taken too many rooster photos, but here they are:


Rare group shot. They don't have names yet, so I will go by description. Clockwise from bottom gray mutt: Little guy (brownish barred), pretty guy (calico looking), brown hen, rooster I'm not really considering, and big guy (lighter barred). I like the coloring on little guy, but I'm leaning towards keeping pretty guy and big guy, since little guy is so short. I know pretty guy is not standard color, but I like his looks.

Here's little guy's back. I like the brown color:


Big guy's back. he's got some gray and washed-out looking areas.


Big and little chest shot. They both have a decent girth, but big guy is much taller. The big one has white legs, and little has straw color.



Another shot of big guy:




The one I think is pretty. He has yellow legs:



chest shot of pretty:


I could also keep the 2 barred birds (big and little), but I am somehow stuck on the pretty one. There you have it. I'd love to hear any feedback. Maybe I can update pullet photos later.

 

[naturespace]

Seiji does look great! How old is he?

Bucks, how old are yours?

I noticed a big change in my older cockerel at 19 weeks. He was much wider and manly looking. I think we need to pick our keepers when they are a couple months older. They seem to change a lot as they get older.

 

[ronott1]

Seiji does look great! How old is he?

Bucks, how old are yours?

I noticed a big change in my older cockerel at 19 weeks. He was much wider and manly looking. I think we need to pick our keepers when they are a couple months older. They seem to change a lot as they get older.

Three of us hatched them for the Easter hatch. They are going to be 11 weeks old on Friday.

Seiji is very friendly. I have three Partridge Rock Cockerels that are going to freezer camp this weekend. They draw blood...

Ron

 

[buckabucka]

Yes, these are 11 weeks, from the Easter hatch.

I guess the reason I am beginning to select now, is that I am worried about the hens getting harassed by all these roosters, and the roosters doing battle with each other over the hens. My intention was to move the whole flock as a unit into the new hoop coop, leaving the excess roosters in my carport where they are now.

The hoop coop still isn't finished though, and with DH working more now, it will be at least 2 weeks, maybe more. Perhaps I can move just the hens when it is done, and reintroduce the two roosters later. There are 9 roosters in total. I'm fairly new at this, but I've read you can't separate the roosters and then put them back and expect them to get along.

There is also a small separate grow out area in my regular coop, but I hesitate to put the new hens there, as I have had some respiratory issue going on. It has not affected all the hens, or egg production, nor is it deadly, and I'm not going to be changing my shoes walking between coops, so I suppose that is really not a big issue.

If I raise the Basque without the hens for 6 weeks or so, and then put them in with the hens, won't they start fighting? I've never attempted to keep two roosters, so I have no experience with this.

 

[1muttsfan]

They are still pretty young to be squabbling over girls yet. You should still have at least a few weeks before having that problem.

 

[Maggiesdad]

I would guess 8 more weeks before problems. If you can, pick up and carry around your favorite roos (football hold) for a minute or two each day. It will pay off when they get testy around POL 21-24wks.

I keep my breeding hens in one spot, and rotate my breeder boys in and out as I need them. When I don't need them, I keep them in tractors with spare BA and JG hens, just to keep them occupied. That way I don't have to deal with reintegrating roos.

I had a grow out pen of 7 hatchmate cockerels, they squabbled quite a bit around the girls POL, and each time I've harvested (from the bottom) they have had to sort out the new pecking order. There's 3 left,at 28 weeks, and they still get along with each other. But they are well away from the girls.

It's nice to have a slow growing bird that can be processed when convenient, and not have to do 25 with a date on the calendar, worrying about whether they'll kick off if I wait too long.

 

[pastrymama]

i only have the 2 roos and they never fight, or at least i have never seen them fight. i have a few gold sexlinks in there as well that are laying and i haven't seen them fighting over them either. maybe it's the muscovies that keep them in check? they are afraid of them.

 

[buckabucka]

Thanks! I hope everyone is right that I have a some more time. I became concerned because one of the olive egger roos grabbed a Basque hen by the neck and she screamed and ran helter-skelter all over the place, afraid of everyone. There are 2 olive-eggers I've seen doing this.
I have not seen any fighting, just normal chest-bumping type challenges.

I'll have to try carrying them around. Just today, I did try picking up 2 of them just for a second.. One squawked, but was indifferent when I set him down. The other bit me a few times. The smaller one that is brownish does not let me get close enough to even touch him.

What is it with the biting, anyway? One of the hens immediately starts biting my shoes when I walk in, and will bite my legs the whole time I'm in there, or hand, if I reach towards her. All the Basque are doing this, but this one hen is the most aggressive. That is why I call them "curious" or "bold", not "friendly". They are an interesting breed, anyway.

 

[buckabucka]

Sorry, - double post